Kairos Church Planting
2023 Annual Report
Kairos Church Planting began in 2005 with the mission to plant new churches in new places for new kinds of people. Since then, we have helped start some 40 churches and campus ministries. In 2023, we celebrated the launch of Kindred Church in La Mesa, CA, coached with planters who will start churches in Tucson, AZ, and Haltom City, TX, and continued coaching relationships with several ministers who already have their churches up and running.
We hope you will be encouraged by the photos and stories of lives changed by new churches and ministries Kairos has helped start. New churches are one of the best tools there is to reach new people for Jesus. We have experienced his abundant grace and we want to share it as widely as possible.
A Word From Our Director
As I travel around the country, I hear the same thing over and over. “We need a revival. We are long overdue!” There is a deep longing for something new. We are hungering for the Holy Spirit to set fire to everything, especially our faith.
At one level there is nothing wrong with our faith. Jesus is firmly implanted on the throne. Yet, why do the majesty and miracles of heaven at times feel so far from our experience? Where is the transformation that we read about in Scripture? What are we missing?
We can experience the majesty of God once we embark on the mission of God! We are seeing lives transformed, the sick healed, the wounded restored and the saddest become joyful when we, with broken hearts, fully submit ourselves to the one who is calling us homeward.
Kairos is actively working to plant new churches in Tucson, Ft. Worth, San Diego, and Boston. Would you like to see God’s majesty? Perhaps even some miracles? Come along and partner with us! Like the shepherds to the manger, let’s go together and behold what the Spirit of Christ is doing!
I am firmly convinced if we partner together for the mission of God that we will see the majesty of God. Let’s Go! Let’s do this! Whether sending someone or being sent yourself, let’s be on the mission of God!
Kindred Launch
In January of 2023, Kindred Church launched in La Mesa, CA. This young church is a replant of La Mesa Church of Christ. After La Mesa closed its doors and sold its building, a core team of the remaining leaders reimagined what church on mission in La Mesa could look like. With fresh ideas, new energy, and faith that God is Lord of redemption and renewal, they celebrated their launch as Kindred in the center of La Mesa.
Common Call San Diego
Common Call San Diego was born through the God-sized dreams of people at Kindred Church, Heritage21, San Diego Christian Foundation, and Kairos. Over the next several years, the goal of Common Call is to start 5 new churches and campus ministries. We are actively recruiting campus ministers and church planters and encouraging young adults to start their careers in San Diego County to help build up new ministries.
National Church Planting Sunday
In May 2023, Kairos and University Church in Tuscaloosa, AL, sponsored the first National Church Planting Sunday. The day was dedicated to raising awareness of the importance of starting new churches.
Did you know that most people in existing churches come from a background of faith, but that most people in new churches are brand new to faith? Starting new churches is one of the best tools we have to reach new people for Jesus. The Christian Chronicle featured National Church Planting Sunday in an article and podcast. Several churches across America celebrated the day with prayer and featuring the need for new churches.
Kairos Church Planting
On the Road
Gulf Coast Getaway was our first trip of 2023. At this gathering of hundreds of college students, we are able to recruit students for Pathways Lab and Campus Ministers who have the potential to become church planters. It is a time to worship and to build hope in the next generation.
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- Kairos Staff and Family
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- Church Planter Gathering
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- Pepperdine Prayer
Pepperdine Harbor is a place of reunion and of making new connections. At Harbor, the Kairos staff gathers for one of our two in person meetings a year. At Harbor 2023, we hosted a dinner and a panel discussion on apprenticeships. Bruce Bates, our coaching director at the time, led the prayer for one of the keynote sessions.
Members of our coaching team were able to visit current and future planters in Washington, Texas, Arizona, California, New Hampshire, and Maine. These in-person visits give us insights into the projects and challenges our ministers face and a time to encourage them.
In 2023, we had 2 planters gatherings, one in Laconia, NH and one at Pepperdine Harbor. These are always joyous reunions and opportunities for people in our network to remember that they are not the only ones on this mission.
Moving On In Ministry
Ron Clark served as the Kairos Executive Director from March 2020 until October 2023. Under his leadership, we improved planter care, church planting awareness, and educational opportunities for future church planters. Ron and his wife Lori brought a passion for lost people and serving the underserved.
On their departure from Kairos, Ron and Lori, who served in planter care, went on to start Agape Community Ministries, where they provide education and support to prevent intimate partner violence, provide services for houseless individuals, and act as expert witnesses in domestic violence trials.
We pray for God to richly bless the Clarks in their new venture as they bless others!
Kairos Income 2023
$598,781
| Churches | $119,331 |
| Individuals | $92,216 |
| Fee for Service | $16,199 |
| Foundations | $50,000 |
| Income for Church Planters | $321,035 |
Kairos Expenses 2023
$622,523
| Administration | $54,326 |
| Development | $32,459 |
| Movement Making | $182,695 |
| Interns & Apprentices | $8,238 |
| Church Planters | $344,605 |
Missionaries FROM Africa
We are following a dream that was planted in us as early as 2019, but which really started taking shape in 2023. What if we could recruit, train, and deploy African ministers to start a new church in Boston? So many immigrants come to America to chase their dreams and end up losing hope. God has started opening doors for us to bring 5 African ministry families to the U.S. to share the goodness of God with hopeless people in our cities.
In June, Bruce Bates visited Antony Njoroge in Nairobi, Kenya, who is working to recruit the families for this project. Together, the two committed to planting 5 churches. Pray for us as we walk through any doors God might open.
Coaching
Helping a new church planter move from willingness to start a church to leading a healthy, growing church is a long process. Kairos walks alongside new ministers in coaching relationships. This season helps them see the tasks ahead of them and prioritize what to work on when. In 2023, we maintained coaching relationships with leaders in New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Arkansas, Texas, Arizona, and California. Apprentices were also being trained in churches and campus ministries in several states.
Kairos Staff Annual Planning Session
Once a year, the Kairos staff gathers to plan out the next year. At our meeting in November 2023, we set the following priorities for 2024:
- Building Up Financial Stability
- Pursuing Radical Partnerships
- Conducting Discovery and Pathways Labs
- Board Development
- Unity
Financial Foundations
One of the priorities coming out of 2023 was to rebuild the financial stability of Kairos by seeking out new partner churches and new individual monthly donors.
Radical Partnerships
We envision a world in which God’s people work cooperatively on shared mission. We love celebrating the victories of new churches planted, new people coming into relationship with Christ, new campus ministries getting going. But, like Paul in Philippians 1, it is our partners in the gospel who bring us joy in the times of trial. We look forward to developing partnerships with like-minded people and organizations who can share in the victories and the sorrows of ministry.
Pathways and Discovery Labs
Discovery Labs are at the heart of the Kairos mission. This is where we spend extended time with potential church planters. In 2024, a goal is to conduct a Discovery Lab ( to identify and assess church planters) and a Pathways Lab (to prepare young leaders for their first ministry jobs and set them on a path to successful ministry down the road).
Board Development
As the 2023 board reaches the end of their initial commitment, we look forward to cultivating new board members. Our intention for 2024 is to identify and recruit new board members who bring unique skills that will help Kairos grow.
Unity
Jesus’ prayer for his believers in John 17 is our prayer. Let’s work together. Let’s appreciate Jesus work in all of us. Let’s do this!
Be a 100 for 100 Partner!
Kairos runs on the generous donations of individuals and churches who understand why starting new churches is essential. We LOVE one-time donations, but we LIVE on monthly and other ongoing support!
We are seeking 100 people to give $100 a month to help identify, recruit, and equip new leaders for new churches and other ministries.
Pray about whether God is inviting you to be a gospel partner with Kairos in this ministry. If the answer is yes, GIVE TODAY!